COLETTE FU 傅 三 三

With the help of a Fulbright fellowship, I began photographing for We Are Tiger Dragon People in 2008. 25 of the 55 minority tribes of China reside in Yunnan Province and comprise less than 8.5% of the nation’s population, with the Han representing the majority.

My mother is a member of the black Yi tribe; her grandfather was Lung Yun 龙云, governor of Yunnan from 1927-1945 and commander-in-chief of the 1st Army Group. Learning about my Yi ancestry in my mid-twenties inspired me to begin this work and is still in progress. I would like to share an article with you about Lung Yun here: http://www.asiasentinel.com/society/yunnans-disappearing-emperor/.

With a generous award from the Leeway Foundation and the Swatch Art Peace Hotel artist residency in Shanghai, I began extending the project to include ethnic minority groups outside of Yunnan Province in 2014. This project has also received support from the Center for Emerging Visual Artists, Independence Foundation, Puffin Foundation, and Pennsylvania Council on the Arts. I am grateful to the many artist residencies that have given me the time and support to continue working on this project, including Yaddo, the Macdowell Colony, Brush Creek Foundation for the Arts, the Institute for Electronic Arts at Alfred University, and the Vermont Studio Center.

In Xishuangbanna, the Dai people refer to their land as “bazi”, meaning tranquil and beautiful. Their homes are in a lush subtropical area near river basins with exceptionally fertile soil.  One of the least-known but most flavorful culinary treasures in China, their food is similar to Thai food in that it combines sour, spicy, salty and sweet flavors but with its own distinctive style.

In Xishuangbanna, the Dai people refer to their land as “bazi”, meaning tranquil and beautiful. Their homes are in a lush subtropical area near river basins with exceptionally fertile soil.  One of the least-known but most flavorful culinary treasures in China, their food is similar to Thai food in that it combines sour, spicy, salty and sweet flavors but with its own distinctive style.

The Axi, one of the 27 branches of Yi celebrate the Axi Fire Festival to  honor Mu Deng, the man who brought them fire. Legend has it that once  when the naked Axi were hunting, heavy rains came down, sending them to  shelter under an old tree. An old wizard, Mu Deng, appeared, rubbed some  dry wood together and started a fire. The Axi were no longer cold and  learned how to cook food.

The Sani live in and around Stone Forest, and are a subgroup of the Yi. Their lives are as colorful as their embroidered clothing, and they treasure song and dance above wealth and success. Their legend of Ashima is sung from generation to generation and is an inspiration for Sani women today who refer to it as "the song of our ethics.”

Ashima was a young Sani girl engaged to be married to (her cousin) Ahei. Azhi, the son of the village leader, tried to force her to marry him. Azhi unleashed a trio of tigers to kill Ahei who killed the tigers with arrows and escaped unscathed.

But when Ashima and Ahei were playing by a river, Azhi generated a flood and Ashima drowned and turned into river stones.  Her words are echoed through the forest: "I will never disappear even as the sun and cloud disappear, my soul and my sound will exist till the end of time." Sani people say that Ashima’s suffering is their suffering. Great grandfather Lung Yun's calligraphy is prominently carved in red above the entrance.

Xinjiang translates as “New Frontier” in Chinese. Xinjiang Province is China’s largest administrative region and is home to the ethnic Uyghur population. Uyghurs are a Muslim Turkic ethnic group living within China’s dominant Han and have been under Chinese control since the 18th century. Rich in natural resources, economic development of the region has been accompanied by the large-scale immigration of Han Chinese. In 1949, Uyghurs comprised 82% of the population. Uyghur population today makes up under half. Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region is now one of the most heavily policed areas in the world.

Wrestling in Mongolian translates as Bökh, which means durability. Those who wear colorful Jangaa around their neck have won before. These silk ribbons, colored red, green, yellow, white, and blue, represent fire, water, earth, and air, with blue representing Mongolia, the Land of eternal blue sky. Jangaa signifies the wrestler as sacred, as these scarves are also worn by animals sacrificed to their Gods. They dance as they get on the field, mimicking the prance of lions, tigers, and deer. Only the winner will prance off the field. There is a legend about a young woman who claimed that she would marry any man who wagered 100 horses and could beat her in wrestling. She ended up acquiring an army of over 10,000 horses. As a tribute to the woman wrestler who was never defeated, men now wrestle wearing an open vest to prove to their opponents they don’t have breasts.

Long ago, there was a young Yi couple in love. In pursuit of the girl, a jealous Devil King tried to kill the boy. An old man taught the young girl to crow like a rooster to call out the sun and drive the Devil away. The girl saved her boyfriend and the villagers now show their gratitude by wearing cockscomb hats that bring luck, safety and happiness to their people.

Hongtou (red-headed) Yao women of 8 1 Village embroider, weave and dye their own cloth. Unmarried women wear black turbans, and when they marry, they tie their hair under red conical shaped hats and shave any remaining visible hair. Long ago, when traversing through the forest, the leader of the group wore a red plantain flower on the top of her head to be easily visible. These hats replaced the flowers and represent leadership.

The Wa people regard the wooden drum as a divine tool that has exceptional power and is the symbol of existence and prosperity. Wa women uninhibitedly swing their long black, shiny hair to the beat of the drums. Their beat is slow and fast, representing anger and sadness,  anxiety and happiness.

The Bimo (Yi Shaman) performs various rituals to honor and appease their ancestor spirits. Untying knots on grass figures symbolize the release of curses and family misunderstandings; spirit branches purify the family.  The black egg expels bad spirits.

In Tai Yang (Sun) Village, on the border of Laos, the 17 yr old bride  said "I have to do it now cause I'm getting too old." Her bridesmaids  were 14, 16 and 26. The 16 yr old was getting married 2 days later. The ceremony lasted 2 days - the 1st day is spent at the Bride's home, the 2nd day she entered the Groom's home - finalizing the marriage.

The Naxi are one of China’s 55 officially recognized minority ethnic groups residing mostly in Lijiang Province. Na means senior and honored, and Xi means people. Naxi Dongba writing consists of pictographic glyphs which can only be interpreted by a "Dongba" priest. Dongba religion is based on the belief that both man and nature are half-brothers born of different mothers and the same father. Its scripture emphasizes the relationship between man and nature where man is punished for his exploitative abuse to nature. The glyphs here are from the ancient scroll painting “The Road to Heaven,” which depicts the journey of man who as departed souls are tortured in hell and reincarnated as man again before they can join the land of Deities. The glyphs are merged with imagery of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, a holy mountain and sanctuary of rare wild plants and animals in Lijiang Province.

Tibetan Mastiffs are believed to have originated in the Himalayan Mountains and were coveted for their ability to protect people and property. In Tibet they are called Do-Khyi, meaning “tied dogs” because they are primarily used as guardian dogs who are able to dutifully protect against intruders and can fight off wolves and leopards. 

Bamei means 'cave in the forest' in Zhuang language. Tao Yuanming, the Eastern Jin Dynasty (317-420) poet, wrote of an isolated Peach Blossom Valley where people lived a simple,pastoral life. For centuries, Chinese people merely regarded this valley as imaginary. To the Chinese, the peach blossom symbolizes luck, love and longevity, and to some - immortality.

Every Spring Festival, the Lisu people gather at the Hot Springs by the Nujiang River in NW Yunnan. By taking baths and washing off dirt with sacred spring water, people hope for forthcoming auspiciousness.

Scattered throughout Yunnan, Vietnam and Laos, over 90% of the Hani live in Yunnan. For their October New Year, the Hani people of Yuanyang celebrate with a Long Table Dragon Banquet where 3,000 tables are laid end to end along the street like the back of a long dragon.

The Hani people have cultivated the terraces of Ailao Mountain since the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907 AD). With a subtropical climate and an advanced irrigation system, the rice fields are almost self-sustaining as evaporated water is trapped within the surrounding forest forming a sea of clouds that replenishes  the fields.  The terraces  represent a harmony of nature and human will.

"Sanduo" is a spiritual war God created by the Naxi who have lived for generations at the foot of the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. In Naxi Dongba religion, Sanduo is the soul of Snow Mountain.  During war, his troops protected the Naxi; during fire, he created snow out of fog; and in outbreaks of pestilence, he created wind.

The Yi worship the tiger as their grandest totem. Yi people from Shuangbai County (Chuxiong Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province) once lived in a mystical forest disturbed by serpents and wild beasts. Under the direction of the black “Tiger King,” they offer sacrifice and dance to reflect the journey and way of life of the Yi people as they visit each house to guard the village from evils. Thus “Luoma,” the Tiger Festival, was created to display the Yi people’s tiger-like strength and valor.

Video Here

The Jingpo live in the Land of Peacocks of the Dehong Valley in western Yunnan Province by the Burmese border.

Long ago, a brave Jingpo boy fell in love with a smart and beautiful Jingpo girl. He played her the munharpe night and day and crafted her one with an exquisitely carved bamboo tube. When she missed the boy, she would play the munharpe and stare at the designs on the bamboo tube. Eventually she began to weave those patterns into her clothes. 

These brightly colored wool skirts mirror their daily lives as they live in mountainous regions where day and night temperatures are drastic. Angular shapes relate to fern, a plant they frequently saw as they migrated among cold and high altitudes where fern flourished. The patterns are derived from symbols from their respect to animals and plants, and their waisthoops not only hold up their skirts, but offer protection as they symbolize an animal trap. The Jingpo believe that good and evil spirits reside in all living forms.

Only about 4600 Dulong people reside near the Dulong River in NW Yunnan, along the borders of Tibet and Burma. Using bamboo needles and ink made out of ashes from the bottoms of pans, girls got their tattoos at puberty and each clan had its own set of designs. The origin is not clear, but some claim it was to make them unattractive to powerful neighboring tribes (Tibetans to the North, and Lisu to the east) who enslaved the Dulong and went after their women. Dulong woman believe that their tattoos resemble butterflies and that the souls of their dead turned into butterflies. As of 2013, there were only 28 tattooed Dulong women left.

Thousands of Tibetan monks, pilgrims and nomads annually attend the Monlam Great Prayer Festival, where a large thangka of Buddha is rolled out and sunned on the mountainside. Their communal prayers spread peace and help all beings overcome obstacles. 

Thousands of Tibetan monks, pilgrims and nomads annually attend the Monlam Great Prayer Festival, where a large thangka of Buddha is rolled out and sunned on the mountainside. Their communal prayersspread peace and help all beings overcome obstacles.

The Miao revere spirts of the natural world and depict them in their embroidery. Embroidered stories on their clothing protects them and their children. The fish symbolizes the wish for many sons and good fortune, and during their fishing competitions, the more fish caught, the more luck someone will have.  The Miao have a saying, "Birds nest in trees, fish swim in rivers, Miao live in mountains." 

步步生蓮 The king remarked "Lotus springs from her every step!" as she danced barefoot on a floor decorated with lotus motifs. It is theorized to reference Padmavati, the deity from where lotus sprung below her feet.

Tao Huan Yuan Ji is approximately 13.8′ x 21′ x 58” and is inspired by Tao Yuanming, a Jin Dynasty (317-420) poet, who wrote of a traveler who came upon an isolated peach blossom valley beyond a cave where people seeking political refuge lived an ideal, harmonic life with nature and each other. Although villagers told the traveler not to tell of their location, he vainly marked his path and sent government officials who were unable to find it. To the Chinese, this story is metaphoric to an imaginary unattainable Utopia where the peach blossom symbolizes luck, love, and longevity, and to some – immortality. 

Great grandfather Lung Yun 龙云.